My Little Pony: The Redemption of the Dragon Empire
by rcmgamer218
Summary: This is the story of a Empire, far exceeding that of Equestria in terms of size, and it's lifespan, and its Prince as he tries to regain what was stolen from him. Yes, this is Twilight/OC, but I ask that you guys give it a chance before you brush it off. Yes, this will have fighting in it, but I can guarantee you that it won't be like Cupcakes or Smile HD.
1. Chapter 1

My Little Pony: The Redemption of the Dragon Empire

Ch. 1

In the small town of Ponyville, its denizens were preparing for a special visit from Princess Celestia, and, according to her a letter, an old friend of hers. While the Celestia didn't specify any details about this guest, it was obvious that this visit was very important to her, and has asked her student, Twilight Sparkle, to make sure all of Ponyville was in its best condition when he arrives. So Twilight Sparkle was trotting through the town, along with her assistant, Spike, making sure everything on her overdone checklist was in order, and on the cusp of a mental break, when Spike finally stopped in the middle of town.

"Twilight! Calm down! You're starting to lose it by freaking out over every last detail! AGAIN!" Spike said, annoyance and concern mixing in his voice.

"Spike, you don't understand! According to Princess Celestia's letter, this friend of hers is _very_ important, and doesn't make visits to Equestria very often. I _have_ to make sure we leave a good impression so this person won't think Princess Celestia isn't doing her job as our ruler!" Twilight argued, and Spike just rolled his eyes.

"Come on, Twilight, it's not like the Princess Celestia is going to give you a test." Spike pointed out, but this made Twilight jump in fear.

"Oh no! I hadn't even THOUGHT of that! What if she does give me a test!? What if she wants to show off everything I've learned as her student! What if I FAIL! It'll make Princess Celestia look like she's a bad teacher! She'll never forgive me if I let that happen! Spike, you take this checklist and finish making sure everything is in order! I have to study, just in case!" Twilight ordered, and before Spike could even argue, Twilight teleported back to the library, leaving Spike to stomp through town as he checked what was next on the list.

* * *

At the Carousal Boutique, Rarity was working on her gift for Celestia's special guest, a large, red silk cape, with golden shoulder pads, and a flawless ruby on each pad. While she worked, Spike just gawked at Rarity, as usual, and doing whatever he could to help her.

"Spike, be a dear and get me a fresh spool of red thread, would you?" Rarity asked, and Spike practically floated across the workshop, and gave Rarity her extra thread.

"Here you go." Spike said, and he just went back to watching Rarity work, when he suddenly felt a letter arriving, and sure enough, he burped up a letter from Princess Celestia.

"Spike, please! Manners! It wouldn't be proper for you to act so uncouth around Princess Celestia and her guest." Rarity scolded, so focused on her work, she was unaware of the letter. Spike then read the letter to himself, and its contents made him gasp in shock. Before Rarity could ask what was wrong though, Spike had already run out of the dress shop and towards the Library.

* * *

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN PRINCESS CELESTIA WILL BE ARRIVING TWO HOURS EARLY!" Twilight shouted, making Spike jump, and her friends cover their ears.

"Exactly what I just said." Spike explained, as he picked up the letter to read it again. "'Dear Twilight, I have just received word that my guest has arrived in Celestia much earlier than I expected. He will be arriving in Ponyville two hours earlier than I had originally planned, so you should expect me to arrive some time shortly before him. I apologize for this inconvenience. Love, Princess Celestia'"

"That means we have LESS than thirty minutes before the Princess arrives, and we're not even remotely ready!" Twilight cried, when Applejack walked over and put a hoof on her shoulder.

Hun, don't you worry. I'm sure the Princess will understand if things aren't what you had planned. She wouldn't expect you to be prepared for this. From the sounds of it, she wasn't expectin' it either.

"You're right…you're right. It's like the Princess will expect me to work miracles out of impossible situations…" Twilight said calmly, and her friends all gave a sigh of relief.

"Okay, I think we got Twilight back." Rainbow Dash said happily, when Twilight grew wide-eyed.

"But what if this is another test!?" Twilight asked, and everypony just gave out an exasperated sigh.

"And we lost her again…" Spike said with a huff, when fanfare could be heard outside.

"Oh no…she's here!" Twilight said, and she ran outside, and her friends followed suite.

* * *

As the Princess' chariot landed in the center of town, everypony bowed before Princess Celestia, and her sister, Princess Luna.

"Twilight Sparkle! It's so lovely to see you and your friends again." Celestia said warmly, and Twilight looked up, and gave a big smile to her teacher.

"It's great to see you too, Princess. I'm sorry Ponyville isn't more prepared for you're and Princess Luna's arrival, but we just didn't have time…" Twilight started, but Celestia immediately interrupted her.

"Twilight, you needn't worry yourself; I'm well aware Ponyville wasn't given as much time as it was originally planned." Celestia said, and Twilight gave a silent sigh of relief.

"So, Princess, do you know when your friend is going to be here?" Twilight asked.

"He'll be here soon. I'm looking forward to introducing you to him. Luna and I have known him for a very long time, and is one of our oldest friends." Celestia explained.

"Really? Is he another Alicorn?" Twilight asked, but Celestia shook her head.

"No; he's not any kind of pony, but he _is _powerful, of that, I can assure." Celestia said, and Luna chirped in.

"Indeed; he has helped Princess Celestia and I out of _many_ difficult situations when defending Equestria." Luna said, which made everypony even more curious about this mysterious friend of the Princess'.

"Is there anything else you can tell us, Princess'?" Twilight inquired.

"Well, I feel there is something I should warn you about him; his personality can be a bit…overbearing, at times. At first, he may seem cold at first, but I implore you, don't take it to heart; once you get to know him, you'll see that he's actually very kind-hearted, even if he'd rather not say." Celestia explained.

"We'll keep that in mind, Princess." Twilight said, when their conversation was suddenly interrupted.

"AAAAAH!" Somepony yelled, and a shadow rushed overhead the ponies of Ponyville, make everypony look up, and see that that shadow belonged to a dragon that was flying towards the town.

"No, no, no! Something like this can't happen _now!_" Twilight shouted, when the gray-scaled dragon landed, causing the guards that had traveled with the Princess' surround the intruder, spears and swords ready. When the dragon noticed his potential attackers, he gave off a loud growl, and embers and smoke began ejecting from his mouth, as he got ready to strike.

"Wait! Guards, stand down!" Celestia ordered, but her guards were reluctant. "I said 'stand down'!"

"But Your Highness…" One guard said, but Celestia slammed her hoof down.

"Now!" Celestia shouted, and the dragon chuckled.

"You really know how to make a dragon feel welcome, Celestia. After everything I've done for you…" The dragon said smugly.

"Please, accept my apologies; dragons aren't found in Equestria that often. And when they are, it drives ponies into a panic." Celestia said, much to everyone's surprise, and with a final glare to her guards, they backed off, and returned to formation.

"I suppose that would be true." The dragon said, and backed off. "It's good to see you two again, Celestia, Luna."

"Wait a minute…Princess, this _dragon_ is your old friend!?" Twilight asked in shock.

"Yes. Twilight Sparkle, citizens of Ponyville, I'd like you to meet Yol Toor." Celestia introduced, but Twilight and her friends were hesitant with greeting, but Twilight took the time to observe their visitor. Yol Toor was around the same size as Celestia, in terms of height, but his scales made him have larger legs and broader shoulders than her.

"You're subjects are very big on introductions, I see." Yol Toor exclaimed, shaking Twilight from her observations.

"Oh, sorry. I'm Twilight Sparkle." Twilight introduced, and Yol Toor just nodded as he looked at her friends, who were looking at him, not hiding their feelings of suspicion and fear. "Sorry…it's just…we've had encounters with dragons before…they weren't exactly great first impressions on your kind." Twilight admitted.

"Hmm…I see. I find it hard to believe that hatchling could cause anyone much problems." Yol Toor said, directing his attention towards Spike.

"What? Oh! No! That's Spike, he's my personal assistant." Twilight introduced, and Yol Toor scoffed.

"Well, not exactly a glorious life for a dragon. Working under-hoof for a Unicorn." Yol Toor said, and Twilight looked insulted at his remark.

"Well…it's nice to see you haven't mellowed out after all this time." Celestia said jokingly.

Anyway, now that introductions are out of the way. Celestia; your message said you had something important you wished to discuss with me." Yol Toor said, and Celestia nodded.

"Indeed, but that can wait; the citizens of Ponyville have gone to great length to give this wonderful welcoming celebration, and it would be rude for us to ignore it." Celestia pointed out, but Yol Toor gave off an annoyed growl before nodded.

"Very well. But don't stall me for too long Celestia." Yol Toor warned, and Celestia just rolled her eyes as everypony made their way to Sugar Cube Corner.

* * *

At Sugar Cube Corner, the Cakes and Pinkie Pie were busy at work, making sure everypony had enough to eat and drink, and although the Cakes were really working themselves to the bone making sure the Princess' are satisfied, most of the guests, and even the hosts, were too scared to approach Yol Toor.

"So, Yol Toor, how are you enjoying the party?" Twilight asked, trying to make Yol Toor feel welcome.

"It's alright; this food is some of the best I've had in quite a while." Yol Toor said while eating a slice of apple pie.

"Really?! I'm glad to hear that; the Cakes worked very hard to make the food as good as possible, and my friend, Applejack and her family made sure to use only the best apples from their orchard." Twilight explained.

"Well, they certainly know quality." Yol Toor praised, and Twilight a great burden be lifted off her shoulders as Yol Toor praised the food, when suddenly, Pinkie Pie appeared out of nowhere.

"Hi! I'm Pinkie Pie! Are you enjoying the party? Are ya? Are ya? Are ya?" Pinkie Pie asked in a very hyper manner.

"Umm…yes…I am." Yol Toor answered nervously, uncomfortable with the fact that over-energetic pony was asking him questions while only inches away from his face.

"That's great! I helped decorate it! Oh, and I helped cooked the food too! That's what I do here at Sugar Cube Corner; I help the Cakes bake all the super delicious yummerific treats here! What about you? Where do you come from? What do you do there?" Pinkie Pie went on, until Twilight lifted Pinkie Pie off the ground with her levitation spell.

"Pinkie Pie! Let Yol Toor eat; he's here to visit the Princess'; not answer questions." Twilight scolded, despite the fact that she's curious about Yol Toor as much as Pinkie Pie.

"Don't get too upset, Twilight Sparkle; there's no harm in asking questions. Pinkie Pie - was it? – I'm from a Nation far to the North of here called the Dragon Empire." Yol Toor answered, when he noticed that Twilight's friends have broken away from the party to hear about his life.

"That's an original name…" Rainbow Dash said sarcastically, and this got her a glare from Twilight Sparkle, but a chuckle from Yol Toor.

"And Equestria is Old Tongue for 'Land of Ponies'. Got any other snide remarks?" Yol Toor asked harshly, and Rainbow Dash just looked annoyed as Yol Toor continued.

"What's it like, in the Empire?" Rarity asked.

"We're strongly militaristic; there's not a single citizen in the Empire that doesn't know how to fight. We dragons hold high value for physical strength and prowess in combat." Yol Toor explained.

"I suppose that makes sense; everything I've read on dragons, what little there was, always mentions dragon's amazing physical strength." Twilight remembered.

"I was actually a soldier in the Imperial military for a time, before I was forced to resign…. But anyway, now that I've explained my life story to you ponies, I'd like to know more about you. Princess Celestia seemed quite excited to introduce me to you, Twilight Sparkle; I'm curious as to what makes you so special." Yol Toor said.

"Well…I'm Princess Celestia's personal student; just about everything I've learned about in magic, the Princess has taught me." Twilight said.

"I see; you must be quite talented in magic." Yol Toor deduced, and Twilight chuckled nervously.

"Well, I certainly made a lasting impression…" Twilight said.

"…on the roof of my castle tower." Celestia said under her breath, but it was just loud enough for both Yol Toor and Twilight to hear.

"_That_ sounds like an interesting story." Yol Toor said with a smile, and Twilight blushed.

"So, you said you were in your country's military? Why did you leave?" Rainbow Dash asked, and this caused Yol Toor to hesitate before answering.

"My father…passed away. I was given a permanent leave of absence to take charge." Yol Toor explained.

"Take charge? What do you mean by that?" Twilight asked, but Celestia chirped in.

"Well, as much as Luna and I enjoyed this party, and everypony's company, it really is time for us to return to Canterlot. Yol Toor, if you'll join us, we can discuss what it is I mentioned in my message to you." Celestia suggested, and Yol Toor nodded as he jumped out of his seat and went to the door.

"Very well. I'd like to thank you, citizens of Ponyville, for the warm welcome you have given me." Yol Toor thanked, and with that, he walked out with Celestia and Luna.

* * *

The ponies of Ponyville went outside as well, to give their farewells to their Princess', and as they rode away on their chariots, Yol Toor was right behind them, flying to Canterlot.

"Well, he was a much more pleasant person than I was expecting." Rarity admitted.

"Yeah. He's not like the other dragons we've come across." Twilight said.

"I'm surprised he knows Princess Celestia and Luna so well; I wonder how that got started." Applejack wondered.

"I thought that he was really great! He was really nice!" Pinkie Pie chirped.

"Yeah, well, I'm not so sure we should trust him! Dragons have caused us nothing but trouble, and I doubt this Yol Toor guy will be any different!" Rainbow Dash accused, but her friends didn't agree.

"Perhaps…but, it seemed like he's been friends with the Princess' for a long time. If they can trust him, I don't see why we can't." Twilight suggested, when suddenly, Fluttershy walked around a corner, revealing herself to her friends.

"Is…is he gone?" Fluttershy asked, referring to Yol Toor.

"Yeah, he's gone. But it wasn't so bad; Yol Toor is actually a pretty nice dragon. Or at least, isn't as mean as the other dragons we've had to meet." Twilight said.

"Really? He seemed very scary when he arrived, with his growling and everything. I was _certain_ he was going to attack." Fluttershy admitted, but Twilight shook her head.

"Not at all; when Princess Celestia explained the situation to him, Yol Toor became a completely different dragon." Twilight explained.

"I still say we ought to keep an eye on him; he's too dangerous to be left alone." Rainbow Dash insisted.

"You're right. We dragons can be pretty threatening when we want to be." Spike said confidently, but this made everypony bust out in laughter. "What?" But Spike was never answered, even after Twilight and her friends stopped laughing.

"Well, regardless, I think Princess Celestia will be able to keep him under control." Twilight said with a yawn. "I'm exhausted…I think I'll go ahead and hit the hay. Good night, everypony." And with that, Twilight walked to the library to get some rest.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Celestia's castle, Yol Toor was hard at work, thinking of what his next move should be, as he looked at the chess board in front of him. It's true he had Celestia on the defensive, but he didn't want to make any careless mistakes.

"Celestia, I've told you in the past; I don't think it's a good idea I live in Equestria. It's not exactly I place where I can keep a low profile." Yol Toor said, but that wasn't going to convince Celestia.

"I understand your concerns, Yol Toor, and I wouldn't ask this of you now, if this wasn't important. But I need all the help I can get with protecting Equestria; even now, many dangerous creatures are stirring, and becoming more active. Just last week, Twilight Sparkle had told me that her and her friends had been recently attacked by a Hydra while in the Everfree Forest." Celestia explained.

"Then place some guard towers in the stinking forest. It's that simple. Check." Yol Toor announced.

"Please Yol Toor; you and I have been friends for a long time; I wouldn't ask you to live here if it wasn't important." Celestia insisted.

"I believe you, Celestia. But I fear that the trouble I could cause you is more than what my help would be worth." Yol Toor explained.

"While I can't stop you from making your own decision, Yol Toor, please remember that I, along with Luna, rule over _all_ of Equestria, and we both agree that you being here, is worth any sort of risk." Celestia stated.

"But how do you know you're not making a mistake. What if…" Yol Toor went on, but Celestia interrupted him.

"Yol Toor, I'll handle any sort of problem your presence here will bring. Nopony will be harmed because of you. You have my word on that." Celestia said, and with that statement, Yol Toor gave a defeated sigh.

"Very well, Celestia. I trust you. If you _really_ think big trouble is coming to Equestria, then I will help in any way I can." Yol Toor finally said, and this caused Celestia to smile. "By the way; Check Mate." Celestia's smile immediately disappeared.

"Even after _all_ this time, I still can't beat you at chess…" Celestia said in a disappointed tone, and Yol Toor chuckled.

"When are you going to learned that I'm _always_ two steps ahead of you?" Yol Toor asked. "Speaking of which; I'm guessing us meeting in Ponyville and introducing me to your student and her friends, _then_ asking me to permanently move to Equestria is more than just coincidence?" Yol Toor guessed, and Celestia smiled.

"You got me. I was hoping you would agree to live in Ponyville, near Twilight and her friends. They will need your help most of all. They are, after all, the wielders of the Elements of Harmony." Celestia informed, and this got Yol Toor's attention.

"Are they now? After all this time…" Yol Toor went on, and eventually nodded. "Very well. If you see it imperative that I live in Ponyville, I'll trust your judgment on this matter."

"Good. And why don't you befriend them as well? They're good ponies, and I think you would enjoy their company." Celestia suggested, and this got a chuckle from Yol Toor.

"Yes, because they seem 'so anxious' to become my friend when I first arrived. Especially that yellow Pegasus. She ran off and hid before I even touched the ground." Yol Toor pointed out.

"Give them time, Yol Toor. They'll warm up to you eventually. Remember; Luna and I didn't exactly trust you the first time we met, but look at how close we are now." Celestia pointed out, and Yol Toor had to give her that.

"I suppose you're right. Very well, I'll try to befriend them." Yol Toor decided, and he made his way to the exit. "This ought to be worth a few laughs, if nothing else." Yol Toor said under his breath, and he gave a quick nod and smile to his friends as he left the room, and went to bed.


	2. Chapter 2

Ch. 2

"Princess…not to be disrespectful, but…are you sure having a dragon live here in Ponyville is such a good idea?" Twilight asked. Princess Celestia had returned to Ponyville the next day, with Yol Toor, to inform Twilight and her friends about Yol Toor's decision to live in Ponyville.

"I understand you're skeptical, but I have faith that you will come to see Yol Toor as a friend, like Luna and I have." Celestia explained, and Twilight gave a sigh.

"Okay Princess, we'll try our best." Twilight conceded, and Celestia smiled.

"He has more in common with you all than you might think." Celestia informed, and with that, she teleported out of Twilight's library, leaving the six ponies alone with their newest guest.

"So….what do dragons like to do for fun?" Twilight asked.

"Hunt for our next meal." Yol Toor answered, making everypony's ears drop back.

"Well, that's out." Twilight said.

"You have to remember that I said that the Empire is militaristic; that means we follow a very strict regimen every day, not leaving a lot of time to have 'fun'." Yol Toor explained.

"You've never had time for FUN!? That's…so sad!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, but Yol Toor shrugged.

"Sometimes you have to make sacrifices to be the best, and each dragon is expected to perform at one-hundred percent; anything less, and you're not contributing to society, and are considered worthless." Yol Toor said sharply.

"That's a bit extreme, wouldn't you say?" Rarity asked.

"Perhaps, but a lot is expected out of the dragons, and not just in the Empire itself, but to other nations as well. You have to realize that the Empire was one of the first nations to ever rise out of the barbaric ways of prehistoric times, over twenty-thousand years ago. The other nations of the world expect us to always be at our best, lest we show weakness, and an opportunity to be invaded." Yol Toor explained.

"You make your Empire sound like its run on paranoia." Twilight pointed out.

"Do you have any ideas how many nations would leap at the opportunity to try and invade a weakened Empire, and be forever known as the nation that conquered the unconquerable?" Yol Toor said.

"Then I'm surprised you haven't tried to conquer the whole world at this point." Rainbow Dash said sharply.

"We're not war mongers; I said we are always _prepared_ for war, not looking for it. There's a difference." Yol Toor argued.

"Please forgive Rainbow's brashness; she has a tendency to act without thinking." Twilight explained.

"No need. Given your past experiences with dragons, her precaution is understandable." Yol Toor said.

"Speaking of which, I have another question; the dragon my friends and I encountered was _huge_, as big as some of the buildings in Canterlot; why are you so…smaller? If you don't mind my asking." Twilight inquired, and Yol Toor just rubbed his chin.

"That question is actually very simple to answer; you know how you have different types of ponies; Earth Ponies, Unicorns, and Pegasi? Well, we dragons have a similar trait; you have your more tradition dragons, they're about my size when fully grown, and then you have what are known as Titans; the more colossal dragons like the one you encountered. And then…there are our more…peculiar dragons, known as Dovah's, a word in our ancient tongue that means 'power'; these are special dragons that are capable of being a Traditional dragon, and transforming into a Titan." Yol Toor said.

"How are they able to do that?" Twilight asked?

"To be perfectly honest…we're not entirely sure; twenty-thousand years of recorded history, and we _don't_ know what makes our most powerful citizens so special. Though some speculate that this ability to transform is the only connection to magic we dragons have." Yol Toor explained.

"That's right, I read that somewhere; dragons have absolutely no magical prowess whatsoever." Twilight remembered, and Yol Toor nodded.

"That's correct; that is why we are so reliant on our physical strength. We are one of the only few sentient beings in this world that can't use magic, the others being Equestria's Buffalo, and the cousins to the dragons, wyverns. This is why we dragons focus so much on the might of our armies; if we become a weak nation, then other magic based lands may try to conquer us, which they might be able to easily do, if we are not united." Yol Toor explained.

"You also mentioned wyverns; I've never heard of them before." Twilight inquired.

"If you don't mind, I'd rather not talk about wyverns; I'll explain them if they ever become relevant, but right now…I'd rather they be as far away from my thoughts as possible." Yol Toor requested sternly, and the ponies just dropped it.

"Well, Yol Toor, you've answered all our questions, it's only fair that you get to know about us now." Twilight said.

"Well, I already know some things about most you; Twilight, you're a magical savant, and based on the fact that you live in a library, you enjoy reading, and you get help with organizing your studies from your assistant, Spike. Applejack; you run Sweet Apple Acres with your grandmother, older brother, and younger sister. Rarity, you enjoy making dresses at your store, the Carousal Boutique, and have a real passion for making everypony look their greatest. Pinkie Pie…I'm going to take a shot in the dark, and say that you enjoy throwing parties." Yol Toor said.

"Wow! How'd you guess that!?" Pinkie asked excitedly.

"I'd say it was a 'lucky guess', but that's too cliché. Rainbow Dash, aside from shooting your mouth off, you're a daredevil that's always trying new tricks, hoping to get the attention of your childhood heroes, the Wonderbolts. And finally, Fluttershy; you watch over all the animals in Ponyville, and have a very obvious fear of dragons…" Yol Toor said, that last part showing hints of annoyance in his voice.

"Wow. How'd you know all that? You hardly even talked to anyone other than the Princess' or myself." Twilight wondered.

"Well, to be honest, Celestia gave me brief details of what you six were like, but like I said; they were very brief. She wanted me to find out the rest on my own." Yol Toor explained.

"I see…" Twilight exclaimed, not knowing what else to say.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I would like to go flying around for a while. It's been a long time since I've been in Equestria, and I'd like to see what's changed." Yol Toor said, and he quickly left the library, and took the skies.

"I must admit; for a dragon, he's much more…civilized, than what I was expecting." Rarity admitted, and her friends just shot her this confused look. "Well, yes, he _is_ rough around the edges, but he seems very intelligent and confident. There's certainly more to him than what we've seen." Rarity pointed out, but Rainbow Dash just scoffed.

"Whatever! I still say we shouldn't turn our backs on him! Dragons can't be trusted! No offense, Spike." Rainbow Dash said, and she rushed out of Twilight's house.

"Fluttershy, I'd just like to say 'thank you' for overcoming your fear of dragons, and helping us make Yol Toor feel welcome in Ponyville." Twilight said as she walked over to Fluttershy. But Fluttershy didn't respond, in fact, she wasn't even moving, causing Twilight to worry. She waved her hoof in front of Fluttershy's face, and still didn't get a response. Twilight then poked Fluttershy, causing her to rock back and forth on her hooves, revealing that Fluttershy, was in fact, frozen with fear. "Fluttershy, Yol Toor's left; you don't need to be afraid anymore." Twilight said, but Fluttershy still didn't respond, making Twilight sigh in annoyance.

"Don't worry, Twi; I'll take care her." Applejack said, and she began to push Fluttershy out of the library, and take her back to her cottage.

"I must get moving as well; when I saw Yol Toor arrive yesterday, and realized that he was our special guest, I realized that I _must_ make changes to the gift I made so that it would fit him." Rarity said, and she quickly left as well.

"And I need to help the Cakes get rid of all those delicious leftovers from the party yesterday! Can't let all that yummyful food go to waste!" Pinkie Pie said happily, as she trotted out of the house, humming a Pinkie tune, leaving Twilight with her thoughts.

"What do you think of him Spike? You've been surprisingly quiet about this whole thing; I figured you'd be excited to meet another dragon." Twilight said.

"I don't know what to think; he's not like how I imagined other dragons to be. I was expecting him to be…" Spike went on, but he couldn't find the words.

"Like you?" Twilight finished, and Spike nodded.

"Yeah! But he's not…it's weird." Spike said, sounding disappointed.

"Well, it _does_ make a lot of sense that you two are so different; you were hatched and raised in Equestria, while Yol Toor probably spent his whole life in the Empire. To say 'both lands are different from each other' is about as obvious as saying 'a pony has four legs'." Twilight explained. "But there _is _something that's bothering me; how did he come to know the Princess'? And how did he befriend them? Yol Toor and Princess Celestia have absolutely nothing in common." Twilight went on, the questions in her mind puzzling her endlessly.

* * *

As Rainbow Dash soared through the air, working on her Buckaneer Blaze, she stopped in the air for a minute, running the trick through her mind over and over again until she was certain she could perform it all at once. After making sure that there was nopony nearby that might get hurt by being too close, Rainbow Dash readied her wings. Suddenly though, a grey streak flew right past her, making Rainbow Dash spin wildly for a few seconds before regaining her composure. The grey streak then began to perform several spins and flips at high speeds, and it didn't take Rainbow Dash long to realize that the streak was actually Yol Toor, showing off in front of her, obviously goading Rainbow Dash into a contest of skill. Rainbow Dash took the bait, and quickly began flying as fast as she could to catch up with Yol Toor, which didn't her very long.

The two started flying all over the place, around Cloudsdale, over Ponyville, and eventually heading through the Ghastly Gorge. Yol Toor wasn't having any problems keeping up with Rainbow Dash, even as they reached the wind tunnel; while Rainbow Dash had to flap extra hard to get through without being flung around, Yol Toor just gave a large flap of his wings before entering giving him some extra speed as he folded his wings, and used his more sleek design, when compared to Rainbow Dash, to allow the wind to fly past him, rather than against him, and also allowing him to rush past Rainbow Dash.

When they reached the overgrowth of thorny vines and cacti, Rainbow Dash's small size gave her the ability to be more agile, despite her moving at high speeds. Yol Toor, on the other hand, had to slow down, because his larger size made it easier for him to accidentally hit a vine or cactus. Although his scales would protect him from any harm, he still felt it to be only fair that he avoid making contact with the plants as well.

When they finally reached the nests of eels that lived in the Gorge, Rainbow Dash used her remaining energy to quickly fly past the eels. Yol Toor, however, used some of his saved energy to quickly catch up to Rainbow Dash after so much distance as gained in the last part. They were neck and neck as they flew through the nests, both trying to stay in the lead, while also avoiding being eaten by the eels. One particular eel decided to try and take a bite out of Yol Toor, but before it even had the chance, Yol Toor threw a punch at it, landing on its nose, and sending the eel in the cliff wall next to its nest. Despite Rainbow Dash's surprise at the sudden feat of strength Yol Toor just showed up, she didn't allow it to distract her, and instead, noticed that Yol Toor had to slow down to be able to fight off the eel, and took that as her chance to win their contest. Rainbow Dash flew at max speed through the Gorge, though Yol Toor was, once again, right behind her. Unfortunately for Yol Toor, though, he wasn't able to pass Rainbow Dash in time, as she reached the end of the Gorge.

"Not bad, for a Pegasus." Yol Toor remarked, and Rainbow Dash smirked.

"You're pretty good yourself." Rainbow Dash said, and Yol Toor just shrugged.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you." Yol Toor said confidently.

"It's been a while since someone has been able to keep up with me like that." Rainbow Dash admitted.

"I want a rematch!" Yol Toor challenged.

"You're on!" Rainbow Dash shouted, and they two got ready to go through the Gorge again.


	3. Chapter 3

Ch. 3

It's been about a week since Yol Toor settled in Ponyville, and all the while, he's been badgered nonstop by Twilight and her friends, asking him several questions about himself, and dragon culture. Today was no different, as Twilight was walking with Yol Toor through the middle of town, asking him questions about his personal life in the empire.

"So, do you have any family aside from your mother?" Twilight inquired?

"Yes; I have a younger brother. A hatchling, actually; he's only…. thirty-years older than Spike." Yol Toor answered, but this made Twilight raise an eyebrow.

"'Only?'" Twilight asked, and this made Yol Toor chuckle.

"Thirty years of age isn't that long of a time to a dragon; only a couple of years, by pony standards." Yol Toor explained, when suddenly, Rainbow Dash dropped out of the sky, looking worriedly anxious.

"Hey! You two haven't seen any stray thunderheads, have you!?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"No…how do you lose a thunderhead? Aren't Unicorns supposed to be Equestria's masters over the weather?" Yol Toor pointed out.

"Yes, but last night, somepony managed to steal our ENTIRE surplus of thunderheads! They were supposed last us the entire year, but all of sudden, last night, some moron managed to take the whole supply!" Rainbow Dash said angrily.

"Doesn't Cloudsdale have guards protecting the thunderheads?" Twilight asked.

"They were found sleeping on the job; and it was discovered that they were put to sleep using some sort of magic." Rainbow Dash explained.

"A magic user that can walk on clouds…sounds like an Alicorn." Yol Toor said.

"That's not entirely true; I once used a spell that allowed Unicorns and Earth Ponies to walk on the clouds." Twilight reminded.

"That doesn't explain how the culprit was able to transport the whole stock in a single night. Whoever did this has to be able to fly, and be a powerful magic user, just to be able to move all these clouds once." Yol Toor said.

"Ugh! I don't have time for this! We need those clouds found before somepony gets hurt!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, and she took back to the skies.

"I should probably help the Pegasi look for these thunderheads." Yol Toor admitted, and he spread his wings to take off, but was interrupted by Spike running as fast as he can.

"Twilight! I have an important message from Princess Celestia!" Spike yelled, and when he finally reached Twilight, he belched out the letter, and opened it. "Oh…it's addressed to Yol Toor; Princess Celestia is asking you to immediately come to her castle, to discuss a 'national emergency'." Spike read.

"I guess Celestia has her own plans about this whole situation." Yol Toor said, and immediately took off towards Canterlot.

* * *

In her throne room, Princess Celestia was trotting back and forth worriedly, only appearing calm once Yol Toor walked through the doors, and greeted her with a smile.

"Yol Toor; it's good you're here." Celestia said anxiously.

"I take it this is about the mysterious disappearance of all of Equestria's thunderheads." Yol Toor guessed.

"Indeed; no doubt Twilight's friend, Rainbow Dash, already informed you about it." Celestia said, and Yol Toor nodded.

"Indeed. So tell me; do you know what moronic pony managed to steal that much power?" Yol Toor asked.

"It wasn't a pony…it was a gargoyle." Celestia said grimly, confusing Yol Toor.

"A gargoyle? Why would a gargoyle want thunderheads?" Yol Toor asked.

"She wants to destroy Equestria!" Celestia answered.

"Of course…" Yol Toor said with a roll of his eyes. "Okay…why does she want to destroy Equestria? What did you do to tick off the gargoyles?" Yol Toor inquired.

"Well…as you know, Gargoyles are some of the most powerful magic wielders on the planet, they also consider themselves to be the apex warriors of this world." Celestia explained.

"Yeah; they're one of the few beings the Empire actually consider to be a threat if they were to ever go to war with us." Yol Toor answered.

"Yes…unfortunately…they decided to go to war with Equestria instead…five hundred years ago." Celestia said, and Yol Toor began looking concerned.

"Why am I just now hearing about this war?" Yol Toor asked.

"I'm sorry Yol Toor…getting you involved in the war would've been problematic…" Celestia explained, but Yol Toor quickly became angered.

"You should've asked for my help anyway! What excuse could you possibly have for keeping me from protecting you and Equestria!?" Yol Toor shouted angrily, but before Celestia could give an answer, Yol Toor took a deep breath, and regained his composure. "We're getting off topic. How did you end this war?" Yol Toor finally asked.

"I'm not going to lie; things were looking bleak for Equestria. It was a pure miracle that my armies were able to push back the gargoyles back to their borders. As a last ditch effort to stopping them, I used the Elements of Harmony to their fullest power, and attacked the Gargoyle nation with a spell, turning all of them into stone. I _tried _negotiating with their queen; but the only condition she'd accept in order to let up on my people was to give them the power of the Elements." Celestia explained.

"Well, you gave it to them all right." Yol Toor said with a chuckle, but Celestia just glared at him.

"I don't consider using the Elements in such a way a laughing matter." Celestia scolded.

"Celestia, you and I both know that the Elements were created as weapons to protect Equestria. You didn't do anything wrong." Yol Toor consoled.

"I know Yol Toor, still; that sort of power shouldn't be allowed to be used by anypony." Celestia said.

"That's purely subjective Celestia, and beside the point. How did this gargoyle manage to escape her prison?" Yol Toor asked.

"From what I understand, she was in the custody of the wyverns, after being caught spying and reporting any weakness in the Hegemony to her queen, and she just recently escaped." Celestia said.

"…and found that her once proud nation is now nothing more than a glorified store for lawn ornaments." Yol Toor concluded.

"Yes. Now she wants revenge for this embarrassment, and has decided to try and destroy Equestria." Celestia finished.

"So what's your plan?" Yol Toor finally asked.

"You're going with my elite flying team, the Wonderbolts, and you're find this gargoyle, and put an end to her." Celestia ordered, and Yol Toor was surprised at her request.

"Wow…you must be desperate." Yol Toor said.

"Yol Toor, if you and the Wonderbolts fail to stop this threat; _millions_ of lives will be lost to this mindless destruction. So yes; I am _very_ desperate to have her stopped." Celestia said, and Yol Toor nodded.

"Understood. You can count on me Celestia. But I do have to ask; Twilight and her friends now wield the Elements; why not have them deal with this threat?" Yol Toor asked.

"Because she's hiding above the storm, using it as a natural shield. You can't get to her from the outside, because she'll shot you down with one of her spells, and it's impossible to fly through the clouds without getting struck by lightning. The only weakness in this storm is that it can only be controlled by turning it into a large hurricane; you and the Wonderbolts must make it to the eye of the Hurricane, and get to the gargoyle through there. And even that will be a challenge; only Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy can fly, and Twilight's levitation and shield spells can only work for so long, even with the enhanced power of the Elements." Celestia explained.

"Very well. Now, do we even know where this storm is located?" Yol Toor inquired.

"It's far to East; the first town suspected to be hit is Manehattan. I've already ordered the evacuation, but I don't know if we'll have enough time to get everypony out. It's imperative that you and Wonderbolts stop this threat immediately." Celestia said.

"I wish you had said that earlier; I would've already been gone. Inform the Wonderbolts that I want them in the air in five minutes!" Yol Toor ordered, and with that, he made for the exit.

* * *

"Okay; I assumed you've all been briefed, correct?" Yol Toor asked, as five of the Wonderbolts stood at attention when he walked into the room.

"Yes sir! We are to fly to the outskirts of Manehattan, where a large hurricane is being manipulated by a gargoyle. We need to move to the top of the stop, and stop this gargoyle at all costs!" Spitfire announced as she saluted Yol Toor, and the rest of the Wonderbolts did the same.

"Very good. How long do we have until the storm hits the city?" Yol Toor asked.

"Not long; about thirty minutes. And it'll take us from fifteen to twenty minutes to get to Manehattan from here, at top speed." Spitfire explained.

"No time to waste then; we best leave now. Form up behind me, and try to keep up!" Yol Toor ordered, and the Wonderbolts didn't waste any time taking to the skies.

* * *

After flying for fifteen minutes, the city of Manehattan was in view for Yol Toor and the Wonderbolts, as was the storm, which was much larger than any of them anticipated.

"Look at the size of that thing!" Soarin shouted.

"Cut the chatter, Soarin! And stay focused; we can't risk any distractions allowing us to…" Yol Toor started, but was quickly interrupted by the surprising arrival of an all too familiar Pegasus.

"Yol Toor! I see you found the storm!" Rainbow Dash greeted.

"Rainbow Dash, what are you doing!?" Yol Toor asked.

"When we discovered that the storm was in here in Manehattan, I got over here as fast as I could!" Rainbow Dash explained.

"Well, you need to get out of here! It's too dangerous, and this is now a military matter!" Yol Toor ordered.

"Not happening! I'm a Weather Manager, and this storm is my responsibility!" Rainbow Dash said stubbornly.

"I appreciate your willingness to help kid, but the dragon is right; this is a military matter. Princess Celestia herself has asked the six of us to deal with this; we don't need a civilian slowing us down!" Spitfire shouted.

"Grr…there's no time for that now! We'll be entering the storm in three…two…one!" Yol Toor announced, and suddenly, everypony, and Yol Toor, were getting hit by a barrage of rain and hail, and were struck with very strong winds. The whole group had trouble keeping steady, with several tornadoes trying throw them around, and lightning bolts that were getting too close for comfort, and any sort of deviation from their straightforward course would no doubt end in any one of the ponies getting severely injured.

* * *

"How much farther do we have until we get to the eye of the storm?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"About two miles!" Spitfire answered.

"And we have to fly though ALL THIS!?" Rainbow Dash asked, annoyed.

"Which is why I'm telling you to turn around RIGHT NOW! I'm not going to say it again!" Yol Toor warned.

"Good! Because I'm getting tired of saying that I'm not leaving, over and over!" Rainbow remarked, and Yol Toor growled.

"Enough! We're too far into the storm for her to safely turn around! We'll deal with disciplinary action AFTER we've saved Equestria!" Spitfire finally said, and Yol Toor gave off a low grumble.

* * *

As the group got farther into the storm, everything became more intense; the rain and hail fell harder, the thunder was earsplitting, winds were stronger, and lightning struck more frequently. This was evident, as the Wonderbolts were struggling with staying in formation, while being knocked around by the wind, and dodging bolts of lightning. Rainbow Dash was also struggling, as the hail continuously, and painfully, pelted her, despite wearing a protective suit. But Yol Toor had the worst luck of them all; they weren't even a quarter-mile away from the eye of the storm, when a sudden gust of wind suddenly hit his wings, knocking him in just the right location for a lightning bolt to strike him, square on his back.

"ARRRRRRGH!" Yol Toor roared, and he suddenly dropped.

"Yol Toor!" Rainbow Dash yelled in horror, and she was about to go after him, when Yol Toor regained his composure and began flying again.

"I'm…fine… Don't slow down on my account!" Yol Toor ordered, gasping for breath. Rainbow Dash knew Yol Toor was lying, but she also realized that in the middle of a deadly storm wasn't the proper place to make him stop, though noticing the smoking wound on Yol Toor's back made Rainbow uneasy.

* * *

When Yol Toor and the ponies finally reached the eye of the storm, they didn't waste any time flying up. After reaching the top, everyone took relief in the calmness after escaping the storm, but that sense of calm quickly went away when they saw the gargoyle that was controlling the storm, in a blue ball of magical energy.

"So, you managed to get through the storm…impressive." The red and gray scaled gargoyle remarked.

"As is your ability to control this entire storm by yourself." Yol Toor responded.

"Hmph. My quarrel isn't with you dragon. Leave now, and I'll spare you." The gargoyle offered, and Yol Toor scoffed.

"How gracious of you. I think I'll just take you down instead." Yol Toor said confidently.

"Why? You have no stake in losing these worthless creatures." The gargoyle said, confused.

"And you have no _right_ in who lives or dies in your pursuit in petty revenge!" Yol Toor shouted.

"You have a lot of nerve, lecturing me about wanting petty revenge." The gargoyle replied smugly, and she was suddenly sent flying as Yol Toor punched her in the face after charging at her. With their conversation over, the gargoyle started to charge up a magical attack. "Scatter!" Yol Toor ordered, and the Pegasi quickly separated as the gargoyle sent a bolt of lightning from each hand.

Yol Toor countered with his fire breath, but the gargoyle put a barrier around her, easily protecting her. The Wonderbolts decided to try and charge at her from behind, after she put the shield down, but the gargoyle sensed them coming, and before they could make contact, the gargoyle teleported, throwing the Wonderbolts off, and making they almost hit Yol Toor, if they hadn't broken off the attack first. The gargoyle appeared above everyone, and summoned several fire balls to hit the Wonderbolts. While the Wonderbolts were distracted with dodging the attacks, Rainbow Dash charged at the gargoyle, and managed to hit her in the back, sending the gargoyle flying, but quickly regained her composure, and sent several lightning bolts Rainbow Dash's way.

Yol Toor was about to kick the gargoyle from above, but she teleported away from Rainbow, and ended up a few feet behind Yol Toor. The gargoyles hand started to glow purple, and she shot out several crystals at Yol Toor, who turned just in time to see the attack, but wasn't fast enough to dodge it, so all Yol Toor could do was just brace himself. But the crystals either shattered or bounced off of his scales, causing no harm. Realizing he was alright, Yol Toor smirked, and charged at the gargoyle again, this time, getting close enough for his fire breath. Yol Toor let out a large exhale, and practically covered the gargoyle in his flame. When Yol Toor let up on his attack, he discovered that the gargoyle had, once again, put up her barrier, but he was ready for that possibility, so he closed the remaining gap between himself and the gargoyle, and began slamming his fists onto the barrier, cracking it, little by little. Eventually, the shield broke through, and Yol Toor gave off one final fire breath attack. The barrier disappeared completely disappeared; Yol Toor thought he had won, until he felt a sharp pain in his back.

The gargoyle had teleported, right before Yol Toor's fire could cause any major damage, and had ended up right behind Yol Toor, and sent a single magical crystal in the wound in his back. While the crystal didn't go in deep enough to cause any major damage, it was able to make him flinch for a couple a seconds, allowing the gargoyle to attack using her lightning spell; the lightning bolts hit Yol Toor, breaking through his scales, and causing major wounds.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Yol Toor roared, as the pain was too much, even for him. When the gargoyle cut off her attack, Yol Toor limply fell through the clouds, beaten.

"NO!" Rainbow Dash yelled in horror, seeing her friend badly hurt, and quickly tried going after him, but Spitfire stopped her.

"Stop! If you go through those clouds, you'll be torn apart by the storm!" Spitfire warned.

"I can't just let him die like that!" Rainbow Dash argued, but Soarin and Blaze held her back.

"You don't understand kid; as long as that gargoyle is controlling the storm, and sort of rescue attempt will end violently! We HAVE to stop her, NOW!" Spitfire explained, and the gargoyle started cackling.

"I just single-handedly defeated a DRAGON; do you _really_ think a pathetic group of Pegasi such as yourselves will be able to stop the immortal force that is myself!? Once I've dealt with you, Equestria will be reduced to nothing but slag and corpses, and the whole WORLD will see what becomes of those who insult the gargoyles!" The gargoyle went on, and she continued to monologue, boring Rainbow Dash and the Wonderbolts, to the point that Rainbow herself noticed something sifting through the clouds below them, but the clouds were too dark for her to make out what it was. "HEY! It's impolite to not pay attention to someone when they're on a monologue! I'm about to destroy Equestria, and you have the honor of being one of the last ponies I'll tolerate speaking to! Pay attention!"

"_I WOULDN'T BE SO SURE OF YOUR VICTORY, IF I WERE YOU! YOU'VE YET TO TRULY BEST ME!" _A deep, booming voice echoed throughout the sky, sending chills down everypony's spine.

"Where are you hiding, coward!? If you think you can beat me, face me openly!" The gargoyle challenged, trying to hide her fear, and the voice gave out a low chuckle.

"_HAHAHAHA! WHO'S HIDING?" _The voice asked, and suddenly, a huge dragon breached through the clouds, behind the Wonderbolts and Rainbow Dash, catching them completely off guard, while the gargoyle fell back out of fear. When Rainbow Dash managed to get a good look at the dragon, she could see that it was easily over fifty times bigger than her, though it didn't take her long to make the connection as to who it was.

"Yol Toor?" Rainbow Dash said out loud, though she was completely shocked at the new form he had taken.

Yol Toor now had four curled horns, instead of the two regular horns he had earlier. The jagged scales that were set up along his chin line have extended into long, slender, flowing scales. Yol Toor also had several spiny scales sticking out of his back.

The gargoyle was in complete shock at seeing that Yol Toor was still alive, despite her attacks, but she quickly shook that feeling away, and began charging up a new attack spell with both hands. This time, she sent a single, but very large, lightning bolt at Yol Toor, and channeled it as it trailed across Yol Toor's neck and face, though it did absolutely nothing to him. When the gargoyle stopped her spell, Yol Toor just scratched his neck to get rid of the tingling sensation the spell had on him.

"_MY TURN…" _Yol Toor said, and with that, he let out large exhale, sending wave of fire the gargoyle's way. She teleported out of the way, but Yol Toor expected this, knowing that she would place herself above him; keeping an eye out for the gargoyle to appear, Yol already had his fist ready when she appeared, like he predicted, above him. Yol Toor slammed his fist downward onto the gargoyle, sending her plummeting towards the ground.

* * *

When the gargoyle hit the ground, the impact created a small crater, just outside of Manehattan. Her broken body writhed in pain from Yol Toor's attack, disconnecting her control over the storm, which quickly dissipated as the Wonderbolts and Rainbow Dash worked hard to separate that clouds before any damage could be done. Meanwhile, Yol Toor, who was reverting back to his Traditional form, landed right next to the gargoyle, and placed his foot of her neck.

"It has been a long time since a foe has provided such a challenge. Tell me…what is your name?" Yol Toor demanded, and with the last of her strength, the gargoyle gave her answer.

"Son…Sonja… What…what is _your _title?" Sonja asked.

"I am Ripper. Terror. Monster. I am the inferno that ravages your lands. The storm that destroys your homes! I AM YOL TOOR!" Yol Toor shouted, and with that, he gave a final fire attack, burning what was left of Sonja.

* * *

With the threat to Equestria gone, Yol Toor and Rainbow Dash sat on the edge of the burning crater, while the Wonderbolts moved what was left of the clouds back to Cloudsdale.

"Hey Yol Toor, I have a question; why did you ask for the gargoyle's name before you…finished her?" Rainbow asked.

"She was a worthy opponent; a battle like that shouldn't be easily forgotten." Yol Toor answered.

"But she tried to destroy Equestria, and you had her dead to rights; why bother asking for her name, if you planned on killing her anyway?" Rainbow continued.

"We dragons place a high value on worth challenges; by remembering Sonja, I remember the challenge that gargoyles possess. Should I ever encounter another one with such malicious intent, I'll be ready for him or her." Yol Toor explained.

"Oh. Well, I think it's time we return to Ponyville." Rainbow suggested.

"Yeah; no doubt you'll be getting a lot of flak from Princess Celestia for disobeying a direct order from the Wonderbolts, and interfering in a military operation." Yol Toor pointed, and Rainbow Dash gulped and chuckled nervously.

"Do you think there's a possibility she'll go easy on me?"

* * *

Back in Ponyville, Yol Toor was surprised to see that Princess Celestia herself was there to greet him on his return. As he and Rainbow Dash landed in the center of town, Celestia walked over to Yol Toor, and bowed before him.

"You saved Equestria from total annihilation. This is yet_ another_ debt that I will never be able to repay." Celestia said, and Yol Toor responded with a smile.

"You are too kind. But Celestia, if you please, I need to speak to you, in private." Yol Toor said sternly, and Celestia nodded, as they two of the walked toward that outside of town. "As I'm sure you know, I was forced to use my Titan form to defeat this Sonja…" Yol Toor said, and Celestia frowned.

"I know…I never intended to put you in that situation; I honestly thought she wouldn't be that powerful, but now, along with my thanks, you also have my sincerest…" Celestia started, but Yol Toor interrupted her.

"Don't. You don't need to apologize to me; I know you'd never plan on putting me in danger needlessly. I just want to warn you that Equestria will be getting some visitors from the Empire soon enough. No doubt the Oracles sensed my transformation, and the Emperor will be informed almost immediately." Yol Toor explained.

"I've already posted several guards around the northern borders of Equestria; they are to report to me any sightings of dragons approaching from the north, but are to NOT engage at the sight of them." Celestia said.

"Good; that's probably the best response you could've had for this situation." Yol Toor said proudly, and with that, the two quickly ended the conversation and returned to the celebration of Yol Toor's victory, so as to not arouse suspicion.

* * *

Later that night, Yol Toor and Twilight was helping everypony clean up the celebration mess, when a question that was bothering Twilight finally came out.

"Yol Toor…how were you able to transform into your Titan form? I thought there were circumstances that prevented you from doing that." Twilight pointed out.

"There were, but like I said, I didn't _lose_ my ability to transform, but rather, it was in my best interest not to." Yol Toor answered.

"How so? I wouldn't think there's anything to prevent you from doing whatever you wanted." Twilight said.

"Well, although it is believed that Dovah's ability to transform comes what little connection to magic we have, to be able to transform requires a great deal of physical strength. It's not something we can turn on and off, like a spell. It takes many centuries of hard work and dedication to be able to do that at whim. And even then, we are restricted to transforming in only the most desperate situations, because it is so exhausting." Yol Toor explained.

"I see. So I guess transforming is your ace in the hole?" Twilight asked.

"Yes. As I'm sure Rainbow Dash can vouch for me on this matter, making a Dovah transform is a fatal mistake an enemy can make." Yol Toor said proudly, and the two went back to work at the end of their conversation.

* * *

Meanwhile, far to the North of Equestria, in the capital city of the Dragon Empire, an Elder Dragon Oracle was meditating in one of the Imperial Palace's towers, when sensed a great display of power in the far away land of Equestria. Worried about the possibility of who was performing that display, the Oracle quickly ran to the throne room, where Emperor Krii La was just sitting on his throne, doing nothing.

"Your majesty!" The Oracle exclaimed, and Krii La gave an exasperated sigh.

"I trust you are not wasting my time, Lok Vah." Krii La said, and Lok Vah kneeled before delivering his message.

"No, my Lord. I have just sensed great power being used to the south of us, in the land of Equestria." Lok Vah explained, and Krii La rolled his eyes.

"Lok Vah, Equestria is _filled_ with magic users; a display of power…" Krii La started, but Lok Vah interrupted him.

"It was a Dovah! A _powerful_ Dovah!" Lok Vah revealed, and this made Krii La sit up in his chair.

"Are you certain?" Krii La demanded.

"Yes, you're Majesty; the ripples were unmistakable. There is a powerful dragon in Equestria." Lok Vah confirmed.

"Hmm…if it is him…summon the Wyvern Hegemon! They have a _lot_ to answer for!" Krii La ordered, and his servants ran out of the throne room all at once, in order to not anger him. However, one of the dragons in the throne room, went into one of the doors in the back of throne room, leading him to the Royal Quarters.

* * *

The dragon quickly went to one of the bedrooms in the Quarters, and after three quick knocks, a female dragon opened the door.

"Gron Zii! What brings you here, and why do you look as if you're about to break down in tears?" The female dragon asked.

"Empress Drem Ov! I just received word from Lok Vah that he has sensed a powerful dragon in Equestria; he believes it to be Yol Toor!" Gron Zii said excited, and Drem Ov nearly fell to the ground in shock.

"It can't be…Yol Toor, is alive?" Drem Ov asked.

"Lok Vah believes so, your Highness, and that was enough to make Krii La summon the Hegemony!" Gron Zii warned, and Drem Ov growled.

"Curse my in-law! Gron Zii, summon Hah Dov, Su Grah, Hun Zoor, and Mid Vur!" Drem Ov ordered, and Gron Zii bowed in acknowledgement before running out of the room, leaving Drem Ov to her thoughts.

"My son…is alive!"


	4. Chapter 4

Ch. 4

When the dragons that Drem Ov had summoned finally arrived, they all bowed before their empress, who didn't waste any time explaining as to why they were there.

"Please, we don't have time for royal formalities! I have a very important assignment for you four; his Majesty, Yol Toor, has just recently discovered to be alive." Drem Ov announced, and the four dragons looked at Drem Ov in shock. "I know…to hear such wonderful news, it certainly makes these dark times seem brighter, but we must make haste; Krii La is already planning something against Yol Toor, and we must warn him. You four are to travel south, to Equestria, where Yol Toor is believed to be hiding, and warn him of Krii La's plans, as well as help him in the no doubt coming battle." Drem Ov ordered, and with a final bow, the four dragons made their way out of the door. "Wait Mid Vur! I wish to speak with you in private." Drem Ov ordered, and the gray-scaled dragon stayed behind. "It's been a long time since you've seen your brother…over a thousand years…"

"I know. I can't wait to see him again; his little brother isn't so little anymore!" Mid Vur said excitedly, and Drem Ov went over to her bed, and picked up a battle axe and a necklace that had a golden model of a dragon, with a small, round Fire Ruby in its back, being held by the folded wings, and hung it on the axe's blade.

"Indeed. Before you leave though, take this axe; Yol Toor forged it himself while he was in the military, and is rightfully his; see to it that this axe is, once again, placed in his hands." Drem Ov requested, and Mid Vur proudly took the axe, and placed it next to the claymore he had sheathed on his back. Before leaving, Mid Vur gave his mother a farewell hug, and ran out the door.

Three days have passed since Sonja's attack on Equestria, and everything in Equestria had quickly returned to normal. Yol Toor was with Twilight in the Ponyville Library, helping her reorganize her books, again. As Yol Toor read off titles of the books, Twilight put them in alphabetical order based on genre, and whether or not they were fiction or nonfiction.

"So…this what you do for fun?" Yol Toor asked, his feelings of boredom becoming more apparent with every passing minute.

"Yes! It's invigorating, going through this vast collection of knowledge stories. Here's a personal favorite of mine; Advanced Organization Tips for Intelligent Ponies! That goes in…hmm. You know what, I'll save that to read it again later; not many ponies check that book out for some reason." Twilight said in a confused tone, and Yol Toor rolled his eyes.

"I can only imagine…" Yol Toor said sarcastically, when Spike walked in, carrying a huge pile of books.

"Hey Twilight, I got the rest of those books for yo...WHOA!" Spike said as he tripped on another book that was laying on the ground, and the pile of books he was carrying fell on top of Yol Toor.

"AHHH!" Yol Toor screamed out as, unluckily for Yol Toor, the largest books in Twilight's Library, landed on the wounds he received from his battle with Sonja. Yol Toor then looked at the now terrified Spike, giving the young dragon a look that made Spike think Yol Toor was ready to kill him. "You clumsy little…" Yol Toor started, but Twilight interrupted him.

"Don't even Yol Toor! This wouldn't have happened if you went to see a doctor like everypony kept telling you!" Twilight scolded, but Yol Toor just rolled his eyes.

"I'll be fine…the wounds are just a little sore, right now." Yol Toor lied, but now it was Twilight that rolled her eyes.

"You're terrible at lying Yol Toor! You've lashed out at everypony that just bumps into you! You practically traumatized the Apple Bloom and her friends, just for nudging you in the street!" Twilight reminded, and Yol Toor just started looking down at the floor in shame. He _did_ feel bad for lashing out at the Cutie Mark Crusaders, over what really was an accident, and he made it up to them by taking them out for a free lunch at Sugar Cube Corner the next day, but even then, he still felt guilty afterwards, especially since Apple Bloom wouldn't stop calling Scootaloo a chicken.

The next thing Yol Toor knew, he was lifted off the ground against his will, and he noticed that he was surrounded by a purple aura, and Twilight started making her way out the door, carrying Yol Toor with her magic.

"Just what are you doing!?" Yol Toor demanded.

"I'm taking you to get your wounds looked at!" Twilight said sharply.

"I don't need to see some doctor!" Yol Toor protested.

"You're not going to see a doctor; I don't have the patience to take you to Canterlot. We're going to go see my friend, Fluttershy." Twilight announced.

"You mean the Pegasus that's terrified of me? You're going to give her a heart attack if you show up at her home with me in tow." Yol Toor pointed out.

"She'll be fine; she can't turn away anypony that's hurt, and I'm certain that will include dragons." Twilight assured, and Yol Toor decided to play along.

"Very well. But if you insist…" Yol Toor said, and without warning, Yol Toor curled himself into a ball, and suddenly outstretched himself, and the physical strength he used alone was enough to break through Twilight's levitation spell, catching her off guard.

"How…how did you…" Twilight stammered, and Yol Toor just dusted himself off.

"I may not be able to _use_ magic, but I do understand it and its concepts, and _no one _controls me; you'd do well to remember that, Twilight Sparkle. Also, if you ever speak to me like I am a child again, you'll wake up one morning with your horn." Yol Toor threatened menacingly, and this made Twilight gulp as she continued on her way to Fluttershy's cottage.

* * *

When they reached Fluttershy's house, it was almost dark, and Fluttershy was in her home, as was apparent by the feint yellow glow that was coming from her windows. Twilight knocked on the door lightly, and it didn't take long for Fluttershy to slightly open the door.

"Oh, Twilight! Good evening. And I see you brought the dragon…wait! DRAGON!?" Fluttershy said in horror, and she quickly slammed the door and turned out all her lights.

"Fluttershy! Yol Toor got hurt pretty bad the other day, and he needs your help. You're closest pony we have in Ponyville that can doctor him." Twilight said.

"Can't you use your magic to heal him!?" Fluttershy begged.

"I don't know any healing spells that can heal wounds this major, and even if I did, I'd have to know a lot about the physiology of dragon Yol Toor's size, which I don't." Twilight pointed out.

"Well…how bad can his wounds be?" Fluttershy wondered.

"Bad. You'd have to seem them for yourself so you can understand why he needs _your_ help." Twilight said firmly.

"I'm not going out there! He's a dragon! They love to gobble ponies up whenever they can!" Fluttershy said, but Yol Toor rolled his eyes.

"He's not going to eat you, Fluttershy. OR your animals!" Twilight assured, trying to take away any argument Fluttershy could make. "At least look at his wounds before you ultimately decide. I promise you that Yol Toor will NOT hurt you. Isn't that right Yol Toor?" Twilight asked.

"You have my word, Fluttershy; I will not do anything to harm you, or your animals." Yol Toor promised, and Fluttershy was quiet for a few seconds, as she mulled it over.

"You swear?" Fluttershy asked.

"Yes." Yol Toor answered.

"Pinkie Pie Swear?" Fluttershy offered, and this made Yol Toor raise an eyebrow.

"I'm sorry…what?" Yol Toor asked, confused.

"Pinkie Pie Swear; it's something Pinkie came up with to show that she will never break a promise, no matter what. It goes like this…" Twilight went on, and she cleared her throat. "Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!" Twilight chanted, while performing the movements for the oath, but this just made Yol Toor roll his eyes.

"I'm not saying that." Yol Toor said sharply, and Twilight just glared at him for a few seconds. "I'm NOT saying that…but, Fluttershy, you have my most sincere word that I will not harm you, or your animals. And when a dragon gives you his word, that is the most secure contract you can make." Yol Toor admitted, and all was silent for a few seconds, until some clicks on the other side of the door could be heard, and the door slowly opened, stopping only wide enough that one of Fluttershy's eyes could be seen.

"Okay…let me take a look at your injuries." Fluttershy said, and Yol Toor bent to the side, showing Fluttershy his back, and revealing his injuries; he had three severe burns on his back where the lightning burnt through his scales, and a longer wound going down his back. "Oh my…" Fluttershy said, and she opened the door all the way. "Let's get those wounds taken care of. Twilight, I'll need your help with the bandages." Fluttershy said, and both Yol Toor and Twilight walked into the house.

* * *

After a few minutes of looking around, Fluttershy returned to the leaving room of the cottage, with the leaf of a plant in her hoof. Fluttershy then bit off the tip of the plant, and a clear substance started pouring out of the larger part of the plant.

"Now this should only sting for a few seconds. I don't know if it'll help your wounds heal, but at the very least, it should make the pain go away." Fluttershy explained, and Yol Toor nodded as Fluttershy got ready to spread the substance on his wounds. While it wasn't enough for Yol Toor to roar outright, Fluttershy lightly pressing on the wounds did make him wince a little. But that pain quickly went away as the plant quickly perform its intended effect, surprising Yol Toor at how much better he was suddenly feeling. Twilight then took that moment to quickly wrap bandage tape around Yol Toor's waist and back, completely covering the wounds to prevent infection, marveling at the fact Yol Toor's wounds weren't infected already.

"Ahh…that's much better. Thank you Fluttershy." Yol Toor said, and he started to turn around to return to his home, when Fluttershy stopped him.

"Uhh…Yol Toor? If it's not too much trouble…I think it would be best if you were to…stay here. Until I'm sure your injuries will make a full recovery." Fluttershy said.

"I'm sure I'll be fine Fluttershy. You've done enough to help me already." Yol Toor answered gratefully.

"Well…it's just that…I want to make sure that the plant I used doesn't make your wounds worse. While it works just fine on ponies, I don't know how it works on dragons." Fluttershy said cautiously, and Yol Toor looked at his bandages, before sighing and nodding.

"Very well. You make a good point, Fluttershy. I suppose there's no harm in letting you keep watch on my injuries. How long would I be here?" Yol Toor asked.

"One day. No longer than two." Fluttershy answered quickly.

"Alright, that's fine. Where do you want me to sleep?" Yol Toor asked.

"Anywhere that seems comfortable to you." Fluttershy said, and Yol Toor walked over to a nearby couch, and got ready to get some sleep, while Fluttershy and Twilight talked, when he felt something bouncing on his chest over and over again. Yol Toor opened his eyes to see a single white rabbit jumping up and down on him in annoyed manner. Yol Toor huffed, and flicked the rabbit off of him, and tried to get back to sleep, only to have the rabbit futilely try and push Yol Toor off the couch, annoying Yol Toor to the point where he lunged at the rabbit.

* * *

"I'm surprised Fluttershy; I wasn't expecting you to ask Yol Toor to stay." Twilight said, impressed with her friends boldness.

"Well…even if he is a dragon, I would hate for him to be put in worse condition because of an oversight on my part." Fluttershy admitted, and Twilight smiled.

"That's very noble of you. I wish I could stay, but I need to help Spike finish cleaning up the library. But I'll be back first thing in the morning to help you." Twilight offered.

"Thank you Twilight. I appreciate that. Good night." Fluttershy said, and the two waved at each other as Fluttershy shut the door. When she turned around however, she was appalled to see Yol Toor with puffed cheeks, and a pair of rabbit ears hanging out of his mouth. "ANGEL!" Fluttershy shouted in horror, and she ran over to Yol Toor. "Spit him out!" Fluttershy demanded, and Yol Toor just shot her a confused look, when suddenly, Yol Toor found himself being hit with The Stare. "Spit! Him! Out!" Fluttershy demanded again, and Yol Toor finally just rolled his eyes, and spat out Angel, who rolled forward onto the ground, stopping at Fluttershy's hoofs, dazed and covered in dragon slobber. "You said…" Fluttershy started, but Yol Toor interrupted her.

"He'll be fine…he won't be able to smell anything except my breath for a few weeks, but he'll be fine." Yol Toor explained.

"Why did you…" Fluttershy began to ask, when Yol Toor, again, interrupted her.

"I was just trying to get some rest, when that annoying little rabbit kept bouncing on me and trying to push me off the couch." Yol Toor explained, but he saw how upset Fluttershy was, and frowned. "I didn't mean to upset you; I apologize. It won't happen again; you have my word." Yol Toor swore, and Fluttershy just looked down at Angel, and sighed.

"Come on Angel; let's get you a bath and put you to bed." Fluttershy said, and she put Angel on her back, and took him into the bathroom.

When Twilight got home later that evening, she started to call out to Spike, but was caught off guard when she saw Princess Celestia in her home.

* * *

"Princess Celestia!" Twilight said, and she bowed before the Princess, who motioned Twilight to stand so she could hug her student.

"Good evening, Twilight. I was just stopping by to see how you and the others were getting along with Yol Toor. Spike had just explained to me that the two of you went to Fluttershy's house? I was just about to make my way there, but I guess there's no point now. I suppose Yol Toor returned to his home as well?" Celestia inquired.

"Not exactly; he stayed at Fluttershy's cottage, at Fluttershy's request, believe it or not; we went there about an hour ago, to finally have his injuries looked at. They kept getting hit, and Yol Toor kept getting angrier and angrier because of it. So, Fluttershy gave him some medicine and bandaged him up, and asked him stay for a day or two to make sure he was healing properly." Twilight explained.

"Ah. I thought that was Yol Toor's roaring I could hear from the castle." Celestia joked. "Though I must admit, from what you've said, Yol Toor was quite adamant about not needing to see a doctor. And if I know Yol Toor, which I do, _nothing_ changes his mind. He's incredibly stubborn" Celestia said.

"Not to mention has a quick temper." Twilight said.

"What do you mean?" Celestia asked.

"Well, when I suggested Yol Toor go see a doctor, he once again told me he was fine. I got fed up with his stubbornness, so I picked him up with my levitation spell, and started to carry him to Fluttershy's cottage. And this is the most amazing part; I don't know how…but he somehow has enough knowledge of magic to know how to break a levitation spell! I thought it was impossible for dragons to use magic!" Twilight said.

"It is; but you see, when Luna and I ruled from our castle in the Everfree Forest, Yol Toor would a lot of time reading ancient scrolls in the castle library to learn about the fundaments of magic, and how a lot of spells work. He may not be able to use magic, but he has better understanding of magic than most unicorn; he may even know more than your Zebra friend, Zecora." Celestia admitted.

"Wow…" Twilight said simply.

"But that's beside the point; what makes you think he has a quick temper?" Celestia asked.

"Well, shortly after he broke free from my spell, Yol Toor said that if I ever treat him like a child, I'll wake up one morning without my horn." Twilight said, shivering at the thought of not being able to use magic.

"Ah, I see. Twilight, while I cannot condone Yol Toor's threat, you have to understand that Yol Toor comes from an upbringing that does not…tolerate disrespect." Celestia explained.

"What upbringing is that?" Twilight asked.

"It's not my place to tell you. And I don't think Yol Toor meant what he said; he was probably just irritated with all the pain he was facing; he doesn't throw threats like that around lightly, so take too much offense to them." Celestia said, and although it didn't make Twilight feel better, it calmed her down. "Well, I need to return to Canterlot. Good night Twilight, Spike." Celestia said, and with a sudden flash of light, Celestia teleported back to Canterlot.

* * *

After about thirty minutes, Fluttershy returned to the living room with a now clean Angel Bunny, and proceeded to tuck the rabbit into his personal bed. After making sure he was comfortable, Fluttershy turned around to tend to her animals, when she received a pillow to the back of her head. Fluttershy turned around, and saw Angel crossing his arms and turning her nose up to her.

"Alright, I sing you your lullaby." Fluttershy said, and she cleared her throat as she got ready to sing.

"**Hush now, quite now. It's time to lay your sleepy head. **

**Hush now, quite now. It's time to go to bed." **

Fluttershy's singing was starting to put Angel, as well as the rest of the animals in her house, to sleep, when she was suddenly interrupted by the sound of deep snoring. Fluttershy looked around for the source of the snoring, surprised to find that it was coming from Yol Toor, who apparently wasn't immune to the effects of a soothing lullaby. Fluttershy couldn't help but smile at the content dragon, despite her fear of him, and she decided to walk over and have the blanket, which fell off of him when Yol Toor suddenly went to sleep, cover him, before taking care of the rest of animals. Maybe things wouldn't be as bad as she was expecting.

* * *

The next morning, when Fluttershy had woken up, she quickly went downstairs to prepare breakfast for her animals, and saw that Yol Toor was just waking up as well, stretching and gave out a deep yawn.

"Man, I can't _remember_ the last time I slept that well. Good morning, Fluttershy." Yol Toor greeted.

"Oh…good morning Yol Toor. It's nice to hear that you had a good night sleep." Fluttershy said.

"Indeed. Would you like some help making breakfast for your animals?" Yol Toor offered, and Fluttershy nodded.

"Some help would be nice. Thank you." Fluttershy thanked.

"Consider it me repaying you for the help you gave me yesterday. If this is sufficient." Yol Toor said, and Fluttershy smiled.

"It is." Fluttershy confirmed, and Fluttershy started cutting up vegetables and fruit while Yol Toor put them in a salad for each animal. When the salads were finished, Yol Toor and Fluttershy proceeded pass them out to the animals in the cottage. Fluttershy gave Angel his salad, but she turned around too quickly to notice Angel turning his nose up to it, and start demanding something else from a cookbook he had grabbed. While Fluttershy was passing out more salads, Yol Toor decided to get in Angel's face, bare his fangs, and lowly growl at Angel. Angel then grabbed the salad piece by piece, and shove the whole thing into his mouth. Fluttershy turned around when hearing Yol Toor growl, but Yol Toor moved back quick enough to avoid getting caught threatening Angel.

"Sorry. That was my stomach; I haven't eaten yet. I'll go catch some fish after this, if you don't mind." Yol Toor requested, and Fluttershy nodded, making her notice that Angel's bowl was already empty.

"Now Angel; you know better than to eat so fast. You'll get a tummy ache!" Fluttershy warned, and all Angel could do was smile as he forced the salad down his throat.

* * *

Later that morning, when Yol Toor and Fluttershy finished feeding the animals, Yol Toor sat at the edge of the creek near Fluttershy's house, his tail in the water, waiting for an unsuspecting fish to bite on it. When Fluttershy noticed Yol Toor's fishing method though, her curiosity got the better of her, and she walked over to where Yol Toor was sitting.

"Umm…how does just putting your tail in the water help you catch fish? Don't you need bait?" Fluttershy asked.

"There's a special chemical in our tail that, whenever we put it in water, this chemical gets mixed in, and attracts fish to it like honey does to a bear." Yol Toor explained, and as if on cue, he flung his tail into the air, revealing that a fish had indeed bitten down on it. The sudden movement made the fish let go, and fly through the air, and Yol Toor caught the fish with his mouth, swallowing it whole. "Nothing like a good breakfast! Now, is there anything else I can do to help you out?" Yol Toor asked, and before Fluttershy could answer, Twilight came trotting happily towards the two.

"Good morning Fluttershy, Yol Toor." Twilight greeted happily.

"Oh, good morning, Twilight. How are you today?" Fluttershy asked.

"Just fine, thanks. I just came by to make sure Yol Toor didn't burn your home to the ground." Twilight joked, and Yol Toor just started at her, annoyed.

"You're just hilarious, you know that, Twilight?" Yol Toor asked sarcastically.

"Actually, Yol Toor has been a big help with helping me take care of the animals this morning." Fluttershy praised, and this surprised Twilight.

"Well, I'm happy to hear that; I was honestly worried you two wouldn't get along." Twilight said.

"I'm glad you showed up when you did Twilight; I'd like to see how Yol Toor's wounds are doing, and if it's not too much trouble, I'd appreciate it if you'd help me again." Fluttershy asked, and Twilight nodded.

"Of course." Twilight answered, and the three walked back into Fluttershy's cottage.

* * *

After finally getting the bandages off of Yol Toor, Fluttershy began examining Yol Toor's wounds once again, delighted to see that his wounds looked much better than the night before.

"You're healing up nicely. Another day or two, and you'll be back to normal." Fluttershy commented, and Yol Toor smiled.

"Good. I should be free to go home then." Yol Toor said hopefully, but this made Fluttershy frown.

"Actually…I think you should probably stay _one_ more night. Just so I can make sure that you really make full recovery." Fluttershy said cautiously.

"Are you sure that's really necessary?" Yol Toor asked.

"I'm afraid so…I'm sorry." Fluttershy said, and Yol Toor just sighed.

"No, it's fine; I'm asking for your help, so I should take what advice you can give me." Yol Toor admitted with a sigh.

"Tomorrow, you'll definitely be able to return home; I promise." Fluttershy said, and Yol Toor just nodded.

"I suppose I can continue helping you around here." Yol Toor said, and Fluttershy applied another layer of medicine, and Twilight wrapped a new set of bandages around Yol Toor.

* * *

It was late in the evening when a storm started brewing; strong winds were blowing, rain was mercilessly pelting the ground, and thunder and lightning seemed to strike every second. Fluttershy and Yol Toor were makings sure that all the animals and their homes were safely secured and protected from any potential harm, when the storm started to pick up strength. Lucky for them, they had already finished protecting the last of the animals, and were making their way back into Fluttershy's house.

"Finally. Things were getting tense near the end there. Are you okay Fluttershy?" Yol Toor asked, and Fluttershy nodded.

"Yes. Thank you." Fluttershy said, and Yol Toor nodded as he dried himself off and made his way towards the couch.

"Well, I'm going to get some sleep. See you in the morning Fluttershy." Yol Toor said, and it wasn't long until he was sound asleep, so Fluttershy took that opportunity to get some sleep as well.

* * *

Unfortunately, the thunder was too loud and the lightning too bright for Fluttershy to get any sleep. Every time she would try to close her eyes, a flash of lightning would pop them wide open, and the thunder would make Fluttershy jump out of her bed. Realizing that as long as the storm was raging, Fluttershy wouldn't be getting any sleep, so she went down stairs to make herself some tea to try and calm her nerves. Unbeknownst to her, though, Yol Toor was awake as well, shifting on his makeshift bed, when he heard Fluttershy's hoofsteps on her kitchen floor.

"Can't sleep either?" Yol Toor asked, and this made Fluttershy jump. "Sorry; didn't mean to startle you."

"It's okay. Yes, I can't sleep. The storm is just too loud." Fluttershy said reluctantly. "What about you? I wouldn't expect you to be scared of storms."

"I'm not; I'm just not all that tired." Yol Toor admitted.

"It's not healthy to not try and get some sleep when you really should." Fluttershy said, and Yol Toor chuckled.

"Dragons are capable of staying up for several days at a time without sleeping. We have a lot more stamina than most other creatures." Yol Toor explained.

"Oh…" Fluttershy exclaimed, as she put a small tray on the table in front of the couch, and poured both herself and Yol Toor a cup of tea.

"Thank you." Yol Toor said simply, and it wasn't long until the two started talking again, and it wasn't long until they got in a full blown conversation that lasted the whole night.

* * *

"So…let me get this straight; Rainbow Dash, thought it was a good idea, to fly into the home of a Titan Dragon, and kick it in the face, as a way to make it leave the cave. And she _really_ thought that would work?" Yol Toor asked; the two have been talking for hours, and they hadn't even notice that the sun was starting to rise. "And not only that; but this very same dragon that just went on a rampage, because of Rainbow Dash's brilliant thinking, was turned into the equivalent of a blubbering hatchling, due you hitting with this…Stare?" Yol Toor asked, and Fluttershy nodded.

"Yes. My Stare works on a lot of creatures; though I don't like using it, and I don't really have control over it. I was surprised though, to see that it didn't work on you the other day." Fluttershy admitted.

"Well, no offense Fluttershy, but I've seen a lot of things more frightening than your Stare, and those didn't even rattle me." Yol Toor explained, when he looked out the window. "Oh wow. The sun is coming up; I wasn't aware we've been talking that long. I didn't even notice that the storm had subsided." Yol Toor said.

"I guess we were enjoying this conversation too much _to _notice it." Fluttershy said, and Yol Toor smiled and nodded.

* * *

Later that morning, while Yol Toor was feeding Fluttershy's chickens, Twilight had once again arrived at Fluttershy's home to make sure everything was okay.

"Good morning, Twilight." Yol Toor greeted.

"Good morning. I'm glad to see that Fluttershy's help has put you in higher spirits." Twilight said warmly, when she noticed Fluttershy, and walked over to speak, only, she had noticed how tired Fluttershy looked. "Fluttershy! You look exhausted; is everything alright?" Twilight asked.

"Oh yes, everything is fine. I just couldn't get any sleep, because that storm was so terrifying. But thankfully, Yol Toor was able to keep me company throughout the night, and we just talked." Fluttershy explained, and Twilight was both surprised and delighted.

"Well, that's great! It's nice to see that you two are getting along! Maybe it won't be long until you consider each other friends." Twilight said hopefully, but this made Fluttershy frown.

"I don't know, Twilight; while it's nice to know he's not as mean as I was expecting, but…he's still incredibly scary." Fluttershy admitted.

"Can't you try and look past that? He's a good dragon, and it'd really mean a lot to Princess Celestia." Twilight said, and Fluttershy sighed.

"I'll…I'll try…" Fluttershy said, when the two ponies suddenly heard a very soothing voice in the air.

"I'm glad to hear you say that, Fluttershy." Princess Celestia said, as she flew towards Fluttershy's home. When she landed, both Fluttershy and Twilight bowed, but Celestia quickly made them stand up. "There's no need for that here, girls. We are in a private place." Celestia said. "I just came by to see how everypony was doing here; it's nice to see that you're getting along with Yol Toor, Fluttershy. I know it couldn't have been easy to invite him into your home." Celestia praised.

"To be honest…it wasn't; but I'm glad I did. Yol Toor's been a big help." Fluttershy explained, and this made Celestia smile even more.

"That's nice to hear. But Fluttershy, if I may, Twilight said you used a plant to help heal Yol Toor's wounds, but you weren't entirely sure what it would do. May I see this plant?" Celestia asked, and Fluttershy nodded as she galloped into her house, and quickly returned with the potted plant in tow.

"Here it is, Princess Celestia. I just used some Aloe Vera." Fluttershy said, and Celestia just thought to herself for a few moments. "I didn't do something wrong, did I?" Fluttershy asked as she started to shake nervously, and Celestia just smiled and put a hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder.

"Of course not, dear; I just need to talk to Yol Toor about something." Celestia said, and she smiled at the two girls before turning around and walking to Fluttershy's chicken coop. "Well, there's a sight I never thought I'd see; the mighty dragon warrior, Yol Toor, feeding chickens." Celestia said jokingly, and Yol Toor just smirked.

"Laugh it up, Celestia; don't forget, I have plenty of embarrassing stories about _you_ that I'm sure your student would just _love_ to hear." Yol Toor retorted, and this made Celestia grin.

"And unless you want to be turned into a little filly, you'll keep those stories to yourself." Celestia threatened, and this made both of them chuckle.

"So what can I do you for, this morning?" Yol Toor asked as he put the last of the chicken feed away.

"I have a question for you; that plant Fluttershy used to heal your wounds…why did you let her think that it might have an adverse effect on you; I've had use Aloe Vera on you dozens of times." Celestia pointed out.

"Ah, caught on to that, did you? Alright, I'll come clean; when Fluttershy asked me to stay at her house for the night, I realized that I may not get another opportunity to talk to her; any time I'd try to approach her in Ponyville, she'd just run and hide. So, I played along, to see if I could get on her good side. Needless to say, I think I made some good headway. She might still be scared of me, but it'll at least be a bit easier to talk to her in the open." Yol Toor explained, and Celestia couldn't help but smile.

"Yol Toor, you sly devil." Celestia praised, and Yol Toor just shrugged.

"Hey, I saw an opportunity, and I took it." Yol Toor explained, when he noticed how clear the skies are. "It's a nice day today. Listen, I'm about to get my bandages removed. If you're not too busy today, you want to fly around Equestria? It's been too long since we've had time to just hang out." Yol Toor offered, and Celestia smiled.

"Of course. It's a rare day where I don't have much to do; a morning flying around Equestria sounds enjoyable." Celestia said, and Yol Toor just smiled and nodded as he walked into Fluttershy's home, when he saw Fluttershy and Twilight do the same.

* * *

After getting his bandages removed, Yol Toor and everypony else was able to see that his wounds would now be able to heal on their own. Fluttershy then released him from her care, and after giving her his final thanks, Yol Toor and Celestia went back outside and took to the skies, spending their morning together as old friends, leaving Twilight and Fluttershy to their thoughts, and leaving Twilight with the hope that her old friend and her new friend will eventually become friends themselves.


End file.
